1. Field
The present invention relates to a packing unit to pack an article such as a copier, a printer, a facsimile machine, or any other image forming apparatus for transport and delivery.
2. Description of the Background
Conventionally, corrugated cardboards or other such packing materials are used to pack various types of articles or products for transport and delivery. After unpacking, such conventional packing materials may be stored by users or discarded as waste.
Recently, reuse of such packing materials has come to be encouraged in an effort to reduce consumption and save resources. However, a problem with such conventional packing materials including corrugated cardboard is that they are not very durable and thus are unsuitable for reuse for transporting or storing articles.
Although packing materials made of resin or metal may be suitable for reuse, they may need to be prepared in accordance with a variety of shapes and sizes of different articles. As a result, the design and/or storage of such members may need more efforts, thereby resulting in cost increase.
At the same time, a conventional type of hand truck on wheels may be used to load an article readied for transport and delivery. Such conventional hand truck is reusable and capable of loading a variety of apparatuses or products of different shapes and sizes. However, only loading an article on such conventional hand truck may not provide a sufficient stability, which may result in damage or breakage of the article during transport.
As a result, a conventional type of rack may be used to prevent an article from being damaged during transport and to load and pack the article more securely. Such conventional rack may be used to pack a copier, a printer, a facsimile machine, or any other image forming apparatus for transport and delivery, and is reusable and can be disassembled after delivery so as to be efficiently transported and stored.
However, for such conventional type of rack, a cover for covering an upper face of an image forming apparatus is latched on a pallet via a pulling member. Consequently, a relatively great load may be applied to the article when the article is vibrated or bounced during transport, which may result in a damage to a top-mounted scanner unit or other member. In particular, when such article has an auto-document feeder (ADF) on its upper face, such ADF may have a relatively complicated shape. Consequently, the article may be prevented from being securely fixed, for example, in a vertical direction.
Another conventional type of rack may be capable of securely positioning an article when loading it. However, such conventional type of rack may support the article by holding its side faces with spacers attached at supports. As a result, when the article is bounced due to shock during transport, a relatively great load might be applied to the article.